Sandford Sponsors Staines!
Sandford Freight are delighted to become the proud sponsors of Staines-Upon-Thames Football Club, two of our staff members play in the side (Daniel Walker & George Williams) and so far they are currently top of the table having won their first 4 games!
You can keep track of their progress at the below links:
Fixtures and results http://www.mitoo.co.uk/FixtResMonth.cfm?TblName=Matches&DivisionID=24983&LeagueCode=SHBL2017&MonthNo=10
Twitter https://twitter.com/SUT_FC
Instagram @sut_fc
Praise for Whitehall as spotlight falls on air freight, post-Brexit
Air cargo’s importance to the UK is not being overlooked, according to the Freight Transport Association (FTA), which praised the government for today’s launch of an aviation strategy consultation.
Secretary of state for transport Chris Grayling said a strong aviation sector was vital for building a “truly global” Britain.
“This is an industry that contributes billions to our economy, supports thousands of jobs, strengthens the union and develops skills,” he said.
“Now, as we leave the European Union, it is more important than ever that we build on this success… a thriving aviation sector will be central to our future prosperity.”
The report shows £160bn worth of cargo was carried by air between the UK and non-EU countries in 2015, with air freight the only mode of transport where the country’s exports exceeded imports.
The report says the consultation will look at specific obstacles that may be faced by the air freight industry and identify how the government could help it grow.
“Goods shipped by air freight tend to be of a high value, such as pharmaceuticals, bespoke or high-quality manufactured goods and fresh food,” it says.
“Heathrow handles 65% of our air freight, and its importance to the air freight market and potential for growth, was an important argument for supporting the proposed expansion there.”
Responding to the report, the FTA noted one of the DfT’s aims was to gain evidence from stakeholders on global connections, which the FTA noted was of “huge” relevance to freight.
Head of air cargo policy at the FTA Alex Veitch said he was “delighted” to see the key role of the air cargo sector recognised in the consultation paper.
“Air represented over 40% of the UK’s extra-EU trade by value in 2015 and this shows the importance of aviation to our global trade. The report also acknowledges the importance of Heathrow to the air freight market, and its potential for growth was an important argument for supporting the proposed expansion there.”
Mr Veitch described the consultation as “refreshingly transparent” in highlighting the UK’s current standings (13th in the Air Trade Facilitation Index and 22nd eFreight Friendliness Index).
“The UK should be top of the league for international trade in all sectors – including air cargo – but is currently languishing mid-table,” said Mr Veitch.
“The document is refreshingly transparent about the scale of the challenge to improve the position of air freight; we look forward to working with the government to find ways to improve it.”
Mr Veitch also said he was “pleased” to see ministers were already noting the implications of Brexit for the air freight trade and had underlined it as a priority.
“As the paper states, alternative arrangements will be required for air services to or from the 44 countries (EU and non-EU) where market access is via EU-negotiated agreements,” he added.
“New arrangements have been identified by the government as a top Brexit priority.”
Link: https://theloadstar.co.uk/praise-whitehall-spotlight-falls-air-freight-post-brexit/
Important Update on China to UK Traffic via Ocean Freight
Port congestion at SHANGHAI terminals has accelerated over the last few days and has now reached the point of critical. Services are now being impacted for all carriers, with a knock-on effect to other Chinese ports, as exporters look to switch bookings to alternative ports to avoid delays, in particular, NINGBO and QINGDAO. All of these ports are ranked in the World’s top 10 and have seen the highest volume gains year on year. Further afield, ports in South East Asia and the Indian Sub-Continent are now suffering similar problems as a direct result of being on co-operating schedules.
A combination of issues listed below, rather than one single problem, has led to this situation which is expected to continue throughout MAY and with a real possibility that things will deteriorate before they get better.
• Unpredictable weather conditions, (dense fog).
• Transition to the restructured alliances.
• Implementation of larger vessels.
• Volumes being stronger than expected.
• Ningbo port omission by certain carriers
• Container equipment shortages
• Empty Hanjin containers taking up vital port space.
Carriers have taken steps by reducing agreed customer space allocations in an attempt to handle a lesser number of bookings effectively. No doubt that while this period of uncertainty exists it will give strength for market pricing to remain high as subsequent roll pools are created with the backlog of containers awaiting export. From their side, Shanghai International Port Group has announced that they are already taking necessary actions to enable normal port operations as soon as possible.
Sandford will monitor the overall situation and issue a further communication update at the earliest opportunity, however delays should be expected and planned for in the interim.